BLUE TIT. 439 



single large one, and at other times two or three small ones. 

 It is therefore impossible to say how many had been carried in 

 by them during the day." If we admire the industry and un- 

 wearied perseverance of these little birds, stimulated and sus- 

 tained by parental affection, we may, I think, still more admire 

 the patience and resolution of their observer. 



YouxG. — When fully fledged, the young have the bill light 

 yellowish-brown, the feet dull bluish-grey, the claws like the 

 bill. The upper part of the head, a band from the eye to the 

 hind-neck, and a ring on the neck, broader behind, are dull 

 light bluish-grey ; part of the forehead, a streak over the eye, 

 extended to the occiput, w^here it meets that of the other side, 

 a band across the lower part of the hind-neck, the cheeks, 

 throat, and lower parts dull yellow, tinged wnth grey on the 

 sides and abdomen. The back and scapulars are light green, 

 with a grey tinge ; the quills, their coverts, and the tail- 

 feathers, are greyish-blue ; the secondary coverts tipped with 

 yellow, the primaries narrowly edged with greyish-white, the 

 secondaries broadly with light-green, and tipped with yel- 

 lowish-white. 



Progress Tow^\RD Maturity. — After their first autumnal 

 moult, the young resemble the adult, as is the case with all the 

 other species. 



